The Road Through Ephesus... Mysterious Plans Revealed Ephesians 3:3

I'm slightly distracted today. I got a new phone last night and having to sit in class and write is torture right now compared to what I want to do which is play on my phone.  It's the first smart phone I've ever had so I'm pretty excited and it just does so much more than my old, non-smart phone.  But I'm going to try to plow through it.  I'm playing some worship music through my headphones so hopefully that will help focus my attention the right direction.

Let's start, shall we?

Ephesians 3:3

"As I briefly wrote earlier, God himself revealed his mysterious plan to me."

I want to start out by saying that I feel the beginning of this verse is slightly ironic.  When did Paul ever write anything briefly?  John, Peter, Jude: those were some brief letters.  But, Paul's letters?  Those are usually long.  Paul likes to use words.  I think we might have gotten along well.  If you've ever gotten a text from me you know that I don't send short texts.  I send 3-6 texts per message.  My old phone had a word count limit and my messages would routinely take at least two, but usually were about 3 or more.  All that to say that I don't know if Paul is trying to make a joke or not, but it sure seems ironic to me.

But back to the verse.

Look at the second phrase. "God himself revealed his mysterious plan to me."

I love that about God's nature.  If He wants you to do something, He will reveal his "mysterious" plans to you.  In the revelation, they are no longer mysterious.

I don't know about you, but I have spent quite a bit of time trying to figure out what God's plans are.  But here's the thing: God has already revealed what I need to know.  Just because I want to plan out the next however many years of my life doesn't mean that I need to.  I need to trust that God will reveal those plans when I'm ready for them.

If you're a planner like me, that's a hard pill to swallow at times.

I like to know what I'm doing five minutes from now and five years from now.  But God won't reveal something until we need it.  He won't reveal something until we're ready for it.

That's also comforting to know.  Because if I'm feeling overwhelmed with a task that I feel is God's plan for me, then I know that God has prepared me for it.  I know that God has given me what I need to accomplish HIS plans.  And I know that He will give me the strength to do it.

God's plans are good and perfect.  They are to give us hope, purpose, and a future with Him (Jeremiah 29:11).

We also need to remember that these are God's plans that He is revealing.  I think sometimes we wonder why God isn't revealing something to us and it might be because those are OUR plans not His.  Our plans need to be surrendered.  Then God can begin the process of replacing our plans with His.  Then HIS plans will be revealed.

What plans are you waiting for God to reveal to you?  Are they  your plans or God's?  Do you need to surrender your plans so that you can learn what God has planned for you?  Do you need to step out into the plans God has for you in faith, trusting that He has equipped you for them?

What do you need to do next?